Shirt-folding table



C. E. WAREAM AND D. H. BENJAMIN.

SHIRT FOLDING TABLE. APPLICATION FILED JULY 24.1918.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920..

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SHIRT. FOLDING TABLE.

APPLICATION man JULY 24.1918.

1,35. 1,079. Patented Aug. 31,1920.

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SHIRT-FOLDING TABLE.

Jlfifiihtlfidh V I application filed. July 24,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, CHARLES E.

, VVAREAM and DANA H. BENJAMIN, citizens of the United States, residing at Cincinnati and Cleveland Heights,'respectively, in the counties of Hamilton and Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shirt-Folding Tables, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to folding tables for use in folding shirts.

table with its bosom iuppermost so as to till arrange said bosom and apply finishing touches thereto with a hand iron, after which the shirt is carefully turned over and folded on a form. I

The object of the present invention is to 'provide improved apparatus for assisting in the folding operation, which insures the best dress and set up for the shirt and enables the operator to produce a symmetrical r. arrangement and at the same time avoid wrinkles, and which is of simple construetion and is easily manipulated so that the output of the operator is increased.

Further objects of the invention are in f' part pbvious and in in detail hereinafter. v

The invention comprises the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter described andclaimed. K

In the drawings, which represent one embodiment of the invention, Figural is a part will appear more plan view, the folding form being, depressed into operating position;-' Fig. 2 is a front elevation, partly in section on the line 2-2, Fig. 1, and showing thefolding form ele-- vated, part thereof being broken away for convenience-in illustration; Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation on the line 3-3, Fi 2; Fig. 4 is a plan view, on a larger scale, illustratin the expansible neckband former expande to a large size; Fig. 5 is a cross sec- Specification' of Letters Patent.

Patented ring. 331, 19263.

1918. serial No. erases.

tion thereof on the line 55, Fig. l, looking in the direction of the arrows; and Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the neckband expander.

The apparatus shown in the drawings comprises a suitable table or support consisting of a bed or body 1 mounted on columns or legs 2 and preferably provided with a layer 3 of suitable padding, At one end of the table is a shelf Fl for supporting hand irons or other devices used in connection with the table, while at its other end and at a lower level is a shelf 5 upon which the folded or unfolded-shirts can be piled.

Near one end of the table the padding on A its upper surface is cut away and the table body 1 is also counter-sunk'or recessed to provide a cavity Ghaving a large portion shaped to correspond with the neckband of a shirt and as large or slightly larger than,

vthe largest size of shirt, said cavity also having a longitudinally extending narrow slot portion 7. The padding around the'edges of this recess or cavity is protected by a shield or guard 8, which'is a comparatively thin metal member extending around the edges of the cavity and provided with a horizontal flange 9 overlying the padding. Said guard may be held down by screwing up the nuts 10 on bolts 'llicarried by the guard and passing through openings in the bed and may be further secured, if desired, by driving a number of pins 12 down through the guard and padding into the wooden bed.

The larger portion of the recess or cavity 6 in the'bed contains an expansible neckband former of any suitable form which is expanded into the neclrb'and of the shirt when the latter is applied to the table. The drawings show for this purpose a former comprisin a stationary body portioh 13 p 5:

vided wit a dependin .bolt 14 passing through an opening in t o bed and secured thereto by a nut 15 on its lower end." This stationary body portion is provided with guide ways for a series of movable members, the movement of which along said guide ways enables the former to be expanded or contracted, as desired. The expanding portions of the neckband former include a front portion-16 curved to fit the front and side portions of the neckband and having a recess 17 in its front to receive the front This front member of the former has a base or body provided with a collar button.

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T slot to receive the guiding T rib 19 of the base 13 along which member 16 slides. It also carries one or more, two being shown, 7

of depending pins 20, which pass through elongated openings in the base 13 and slots 22 in the bed 1, said pins extending below the bed 1 as shown in Fig. 2.

The rear portion ofthe neckband former includes two rear adjustable members 23 having T slots to receivelaterally extending T ribs 24 on the base 13, so that said members have lateral movement toward and from each other on the base. Each of said members is connected by a link 25 to the-short arm of a bell crank lever 26 pivoted at 27 upon the base 13, the longer arms of the two levers 26 having curved slots 28 to receivela pin 29 carried by the front member 16 of the neckband former. The arrangement is such that as the front'member 16 is moved back and forth along its guide Wayspn the base 13 it turns the bell crank l eyers 26 and produces correspondingmfiement of the two memtars 23 inwardly and outwardly on the base. Movement of the front portion of the neckband former therefore produces expanding or contracting movement of all of the movable members of the former.

The depending pins 20 are secured at their lower ends in a member 30 connected to one end ofa rod 31 having sliding movement in guides 32 carried by the bed. Said rod is also provided with a collar 33 forming an abutment for a pressure spring 34 lying be- 35/ tween said collar and one of the guides 32.

Collar 33 may be adjusted length-wise on the rod 31 to vary the pressure of said spring, being held in adjusted position in any suitable manner such'as by the set screw 34. Member 30 is also provided with a depending arm or yoke 35 connected by a shortlink 36 to an arm 37 on a shaft 38 having turning movement in a bracket 39 carried by the bed, said this being also provided with a second arm 40 connected by a link 41 to an arm 42 on a shaft 43 extending longitudinally of the table and having turning movement in the legs or supportstherefer. Betweensaid legs shaft 43 supports a treadle 44, which may be of any suitable form and is shown as a rather long widepla te oarried by arins 45, so as to enable the mechanism to be operated from practically any position in which the operator may stand.

It will be observed that the tendency of the pressure spring 34 is to move the rod 31 to the right in Fig.2 thereby expanding the neckband formen Downward pressure on the treadle 44 through the link and lever mechanism described moves the rod 31 .to the left against the pressure of said spring to contract the neckband former. Obviously however the neckband former may be 00th opened and closed by lever mechanism restore the table with the bosom down, inserting the neckband into the recess 6 of the table and with said neckband surrounding the neckband former. The buttons of the shirt are then pressed downwardly to introduce them into the shallow channel 46 of the guard 8 thereby locating the shirt on the table with its longitudinal or center line parallel with the edges of the table. 7 The foot is then removed from the treadle and thespring 34 expands the neckband former into the neckband of the shirt. The operator can now straighten out the shirt, upon the table and with a hand iron apply the finishing touches y when such are necessary.

, To assist in folding up the shirt the operator .may apply thereto the form around which the shirt is folded. This form may be a loose rectangular metal sheet, but preferably said form is attached to the table in i such manner that it can be readily moved into and out of operative position and is so located on thetable with reference to the recess therein as to cause the shirt to be folded into symmetrical form. The draw-- ings show for this purpose a rectangular plate 47 attached to two arms 48 connected to a transverse shaft or rod 49 carried by two brackets 50 secured to the table, this arrangez nent enabling the form to be turned downwardly to the position shown in Fig. 1 or elevated to the position shown in Fig. 2, so as to expose the recess in the table and enable a shirt to be applied thereto. Preferably the arms 48 are provided with feet 51 which contact with the padding when the form is elevated and support it in its upper position.

7 After the shirt has "been appliedto the table and the former expanded therein, as before described, the form 47 is dropped down upon the. shirt and the shirt is then folded up around the form and fastened in its final form by pins or other devices as is The operator then depresses, the

usual. treadle 44 to contract the neckband former and release the shirt, which is faised with theform 47 and then slipped off from the form, as will be readily understood.

The construction described enables the 1. A shirt folding table, including a shirtreceivingbed provided with a recess, and

an' expansible neck band former in said recess.

2. A shirt foldingtable, including a shirt nearer/e receiving bed provided with a recess, an

expansible neck band former in said recess,"

and operating mechanism therefor.

. 3. A shirt folding table, including a shirt receiving bed provided with a recess, an expansible neck band former in said recess, and operating mechanism therefor, located below said bed.

i. A shirt folding table, including a shirt receiving bed provided with a recess, an expansible neck band former in said recess, means normally adjusting said former to one size,.and operating mechanism for adjusting the same to another sizev 5. A shirt folding table, including a shirt receiving bed provided with a recess, an expansible neck band former in said recess, yielding means normally adjusting said former to one size, and operating mechanism for-adjusting the same to another size.

6. A shirt folding table, including a shirt receiving bed provided with a recess, and an expansible neck band former in said recess, said recess having a button receiving slot.

7. A shirt folding table, including a shirt receiving bed provided with a recess,an expansible neck band former in said recess, and a guard for the edges of said recess.

8. A shirt folding table, including a shirt receiving bed provided ivitha recess, an expansible neck band former in said recess, said recess having a button receiving slot, and a guard for the edges of said recess.

v 9. A shirt folding table, including a shirt receiving bed provided with a recess, an expansible neck band former in said recess, and a shirt receiving form coiiperating with said bed.

10. A shirt folding table, including a shirt receiving bedprovided with a recess having a large portion and a narrow button receiving portion, an expansible neck band former in the larger portion of said recess, and a shirt receiving form cooperating with said bed and adapted to substantially cover both portions of said recess.

11. A shirt folding table, including a shirt I tures.

CHARLES E. WAREAM. DANA H. BENJAMIN. 

